JP2000214259A - Obstacle detector for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an obstacle detector for vehicle by which an operator of vehicle can know more detailed information. SOLUTION: Each of sensors 1 to 4 detecting an obstacle around a vehicle is provided with a transmission part outputting ultrasonic outside based on the transmission signal from a signal processor 7 and two reception parts for receiving ultrasonic wove reflected by the obstacles and outputting to a signal processor. The signal processor 7 outputs transmission wave to one of sensors 1 to 4 selected by a turnover circuit 10 via a transmission processor 8, reception signal from the selected sensors is input through a reception wave processor 9 and the distance and angle of the vehicle to the obstacles are operated with input and output time of the transmission signal and a reception signal. Based on the operated distance and angle, a distance conversion memory 13 stored in advance for each kind of vehicle is referred, converted to distance data of vehicles and obstacles, and indicated on a display 6 and a buzzer is sounded with a period based on the distance.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle obstacle detecting device for detecting an obstacle around a vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The structure of a conventional vehicle obstacle detecting device is shown in a top view of FIG. 14 and a block diagram of FIG. The vehicle obstacle detection device includes a vehicle 50 provided at each of front left, front right, rear left, and rear right corners of the vehicle 50.
Ultrasonic sensors 51, 52, 53, and 54 for detecting obstacles existing in the detection area indicated by the peripheral sector, and a control unit 55 for calculating the position of the obstacle based on signals from the sensors 51 to 54. And a display 56 for displaying the position of the obstacle in response to a signal from the control unit 55.

The transmission signal output from the signal processing unit 57 of the control unit 55 via the transmission processing unit 58 is one of the ultrasonic sensors 51 to 54 previously selected by a switching signal from the signal processing unit 57. One is output via the switching circuit 60, and the ultrasonic sensors 51 to 54 output ultrasonic waves to the outside. The output ultrasonic waves are reflected by obstacles in the detection area, and the ultrasonic sensors 51 to 54 that output ultrasonic waves.
From the signal processing unit 5 via the reception processing unit 59.
At 7, the signal is input as a received signal. And the signal processing unit 5
7, the distance to the obstacle is calculated based on the input / output time of the transmission signal and the reception signal.

The distance data calculated by the signal processing unit 57 is output to a display 56 via a display I / F 61 and displayed, and is also output to a buzzer 62 so that the buzzer 62 sounds based on the distance data. . At this time, the output from the signal processing unit 57 to the buzzer 62 changes the period of the ringing time according to the detection distance of the ultrasonic sensor, and shortens the period of the ringing time when the detection distance is short, and pays attention to the driver. To encourage you.

Here, as shown in the time chart of FIG. 16, transmission and reception processing of the ultrasonic sensor 51, transmission and reception processing of the ultrasonic sensor 52, transmission and reception of the ultrasonic sensor 53, The processing of the signal processing unit is performed in a time-division manner in the order of processing, transmission and reception processing of the ultrasonic sensor 54, and display / buzzer output.
At this time, the transmission and reception processing of the ultrasonic sensor 53 will be described as an example. The time difference between the transmission signal X1 and the reception signal X2 is T
If it is a, the distance La from the ultrasonic sensor 53 to the obstacle is calculated by the signal processing unit 57 by sound velocity conversion using the following equation (X).

(X) Distance La = Sound Speed × Ta / 2 For example, when the time Ta is 1.6 ms, the ultrasonic sensor 5
The distance La from 3 to the obstacle is about 28 cm. The distance to the obstacle calculated in this way is displayed on the display 56. At this time, 0 cm to 20 cm, 20 cm to 35 cm, and 35 cm are displayed on the corners of the vehicle body 65 displayed on the display area 64 as shown in FIG.
Sector-shaped area display units 71 to 74 each having an area indicating the distance from each of the ultrasonic sensors 51 to 54 to the obstacle, such as cm to 50 cm, are provided, and the corresponding areas are displayed in color.

At this time, there is no obstacle in the detection area of the ultrasonic sensor 51, the distance from the ultrasonic sensor 52 to the obstacle is 0 to 20 cm, the distance from the ultrasonic sensor 53 to the obstacle is 20 to 35 cm, The distance from the ultrasonic sensor 54 to the obstacle is 35 to 50 cm.

[0008]

In this conventional example,
The notification to the driver with the display 56 and the buzzer 62 is performed based on the distance from the ultrasonic sensor to the obstacle,
Not based on the distance from the vehicle to the obstacle.

As shown in FIG. 18, the position where the obstacle 63 exists is determined by the angle z from the front y direction of the ultrasonic sensor 52.
Is large, the actual distance L2 from the body of the vehicle 50 is
Is shorter than the distance L1 from the detected ultrasonic sensor 52 to the obstacle 63. Further, in the conventional example, the detection and display of the shortest distance between the obstacle and the ultrasonic sensor are performed irrespective of the shape and the number of the obstacles, and the driver cannot know information about the obstacle in detail.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle obstacle detection device that allows a driver of a vehicle to know more detailed information.

[0011]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a transmitting unit for transmitting an ultrasonic wave, and at least two receiving units for receiving a reflected wave of the transmitted ultrasonic wave. A sensor that detects an obstacle around the vehicle mounted thereon, a calculating unit that calculates distance information about the obstacle based on transmission and reception of ultrasonic waves by the sensor, and an obstacle that is calculated by the calculating unit. A conversion unit for converting the distance information into a distance from the vehicle body to the obstacle, and a display unit for displaying and outputting the distance from the vehicle body to the obstacle converted by the conversion unit are provided.

Further, the invention according to claim 2 is the invention according to claim 1, further comprising a notifying means for generating an alarm sound, wherein the alarm sound is generated according to the distance from the vehicle body to the obstacle converted by the conversion unit. It is characterized by changing the timbre.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first and second aspects of the present invention, the arithmetic unit determines the shape of an obstacle based on transmission and reception of ultrasonic waves by the sensor, and the display unit determines the determined obstacle. Display according to the shape of the object is performed.

[0014] The invention of claim 4 is based on claims 1, 2, and
In the invention of 3, the display unit has a plurality of display areas each corresponding to a distance from the vehicle body to the obstacle and displaying the distance by displaying, and a plurality of obstacles are displayed by the sensor. When detected, each display area corresponding to the distance of the plurality of obstacles from the vehicle body is displayed.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle obstacle detection device of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a top view showing a state in which vehicle obstacle detection is mounted on a vehicle. 1 and 2, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals. The vehicle obstacle detection device is provided at each of the front left, front right, rear left, and rear right corners of the vehicle 14, outputs ultrasonic waves, and exists in the detection areas 31 to 34 around the vehicle 14 shown in a fan shape. Sensors 1, 2, 3, and 4 for detecting the position of an obstacle;
A control unit 5 that calculates distance information such as a distance and an angle of an obstacle based on a signal from the control unit 4 and a display unit 6 that is a display unit that displays a position of the obstacle in accordance with a signal from the control unit 5 Have. The control unit 5 and the display 6 are mounted on the vehicle 14.

The signal processing unit 7 of the control unit 5 outputs a transmission signal to any of the preselected sensors 1 to 4 via the transmission processing unit 8, and the ultrasonic wave is output from the selected sensors 1 to 4. Is output to the outside. Further, among the sensors 1 to 4, the sensors 1 to 4 that output ultrasonic waves to the outside receive the reflected waves,
The signal processing unit 7 inputs the received signal via the reception processing unit 9 as a reception signal. And the signal processing unit 7
From the input and output times of the transmission signal and the reception signal, distance information relating to obstacles such as the distance and angle from each sensor to an external obstacle is calculated by a method described later. At this time, a switching circuit 10 provided between each of the sensors 1 to 4 and the transmission processing unit 8 and the reception processing unit 9 switches a desired sensor operated based on a switching signal from the signal processing unit 7 to a sensor. 1-4
Choose more.

The signal processing unit 7 refers to the nonvolatile distance conversion memory 13 set in advance for each vehicle type based on the calculated distance and angle from the sensor to the obstacle, and refers to the vehicle 14.
The distance from the vehicle body to the obstacle is converted to determine the timbre such as the sounding cycle of the buzzer 12 which is the notification means.
A display indicating the distance from the vehicle body of the vehicle 14 to the obstacle is displayed on the display 6 via the display I / F 11 as described later. At this time, an LED, a fluorescent display tube, a liquid crystal car television of a car navigation, or the like is used as a display. Here, the switching circuit 10, the transmission processing unit 8, the reception processing unit 9,
Signal processing unit 7, distance conversion memory 13, display I / F 11,
The control unit 5 is constituted by the buzzer 12, and the signal processing unit 7 has both functions of a calculation unit and a conversion unit.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, each of the sensors 1 to 4 has a receiving / transmitting unit 1A for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves, which has a receiving unit and a transmitting unit located outside the vehicle body.
To 4A, and dedicated receiving devices 1B to 4B dedicated to receiving waves, which are receiving units located inside the vehicle body. In the sensor 1, the transmitting / receiving device 1A outputs an ultrasonic wave to the outside in response to the transmitted signal from the signal processing unit 7, and receives the reflected signal from the obstacle by the transmitting / receiving device 1A and the dedicated receiving device 1B. I do.
FIG. 3 shows the configuration of the sensor 1.

Here, a method in which the signal processing unit 7 calculates the distance and the angle from each of the sensors 1 to 4 to the obstacle based on the transmission and reception of the ultrasonic wave from each of the sensors 1 to 4 will be described with reference to FIGS. The case of the sensor 1 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a plan view showing the positional relationship between the sensor and the obstacle, where the distance between the sensor 1 and the obstacle 15 is L, the plane of the sensor 1 is H,
The normal is V, and the angle between the sensor 1 normal V and the obstacle 15 is φ. FIGS. 5A and 5B are enlarged views of the sensor 1 and show a case where an obstacle is located rightward and leftward from the sensor 1 normal V, respectively. At this time, the left side of the sensor 1 is the transmitting / receiving device 1A, the right side is the receiving device 1B, Ls is the distance between the transmitting / receiving device 1A and the receiving device 1B, O is the center of the sensor 1, θ is the obstacle. 15 shows the angle between the reflected wave W from the sensor 15 and the sensor 1.

FIG. 5A shows that the obstacle 15 has the sensor 1 normal V
The right side shows a case where the reflected signal is received by the wave receiving / receiving device 1B earlier than the transmitting / receiving device 1A, and the time ta from the transmission time of the transmitting / receiving device 1A to the reception time of the transmitting / receiving device 1A, The time difference Δt from the transmission time of the transmission / reception device 1A to the reception time of the reception / reception device 1B is Δt, and the reflected signal W to the transmission / reception device 1A is perpendicularly dropped from the reception / reception device 1B, and its intersection is taken. Assuming that the distance between the transmitting and receiving unit 1A is Lx, θ = cos ⁻¹ (Lx / Ls) = cos ⁻¹ (| Δt | /
A) φ = 90 ° −θ L = tb × C / 2 At this time, A = Ls / C, C is a sound speed of 340 m / s,
The angle φ> 0.

On the other hand, FIG.
It is located on the left side of the normal line V, and transmits and receives the reflected signal.
This shows a case where the receiving device 1A receives the signal earlier.
Δt is the time difference between the time ta from the transmission time of the dual-purpose device 1A to the reception time of the dual-purpose device 1A, and the transmission time of the dual-purpose device 1A to the reception time tb of the reception-only device 1B.
A perpendicular line is dropped from the dedicated reception device 1A to the reflected signal W to the dedicated transmission / reception device 1B, and the distance between the intersection and the dedicated transmission / reception device 1B is Lx.
Then, θ = cos ⁻¹ (Lx / Ls) = cos ⁻¹ (| Δt | /
A) φ = − (90 ° −θ) L = ta × C / 2 At this time, A = Ls / C, C is a sound speed of 340 m / s,
The angle φ <0. Here, the distance between the obstacle and the sensor is calculated based on the reception time of the one receiving the received signal earlier.

In this manner, the distance L and the angle φ between the sensor 1 and the obstacle 15 are calculated. The angle φ is φ <0 when the obstacle 15 is on the left side of the normal line V of the sensor 1 and φ> 0 when the obstacle 15 is on the right side.

Next, the state of signal processing in the signal processing section 7 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Step S1
The process up to S4 is a process relating to the sensor 1. First, in step S1, a transmission signal is output to the transmitting / receiving device 1A of the sensor 1, and in step S2, the transmitting / receiving device 1A of the sensor 1 is output.
A reception signal is input from the reception-only device 1B. In step S3, the distance and angle from the sensor 1 to the obstacle are calculated by the above-described method based on the input and output times of the transmission signal and the reception signal as described above. In the memory.

Steps S5 to S8 are performed by the sensor 2
As in the case of the sensor 1, first, in step S5, a transmission signal is output to the transmission / reception device 2A of the sensor 2, and in step S6, the transmission / reception device 2A of the sensor 2 is output.
A: A reception signal is input from the reception-only device 2B. And
In step S7, the distance and angle from the sensor 2 to the obstacle are calculated according to the input and output times of the transmission signal and the reception signal as described above, and stored in the memory in the signal processing unit 7 in step S8.

Steps S9 to S12 are processing relating to the sensor 3, and similarly to the case of the sensor 1,
First, in step S9, the transmitter / receiver 3A of the sensor 3
A transmission signal is output from the transmission / reception device 3A and the reception only device 3B of the sensor 3 in step S10.
Then, in step S11, the distance and the angle from the sensor 3 to the obstacle are calculated according to the input / output time of the transmission signal and the reception signal as described above, and in step S12, the signal processing unit 7
In the internal memory.

Then, Step S13 to Step S
Reference numeral 16 denotes a process relating to the sensor 4. As in the case of the sensor 1, first, in step S13, a transmission signal is output to the transmission / reception device 4A of the sensor 4, and in step S14, the transmission / reception device 4A of the sensor 4 is received only. A received signal is input from the device 4B. Then, in step S15, the distance and angle from the sensor 4 to the obstacle are calculated according to the input and output times of the transmission signal and the reception signal as described above, and stored in the memory in the signal processing unit 7 in step S16. .

Next, in step S17, step S17 is executed.
Based on the distance and angle data temporarily stored in the memories in steps S4, S8, S12, and S16, the display unit 6 described later with reference to the distance conversion memory 13 of the control unit 5 previously prepared for each vehicle model. The position information of the display area to be displayed is captured. In step S18, step S17 is performed on the display device 6.
The display area information converted in step (1) is output, and the display 6 performs display. Then, in step S19, distance data from the vehicle body to the obstacle obtained by converting the stored distance and angle data with reference to the distance conversion memory 13 is output to the buzzer 12, and the buzzer 12 outputs It sounds with the tone according to the distance. Then, this routine is repeated.

Next, detection of an obstacle when there is an obstacle around the vehicle and a display example of the detection will be described. FIG. 7 shows the presence of obstacles around the vehicle 14, and the same components as those in FIG. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted. A cylindrical pillar-shaped obstacle a near the sensor 1 of the vehicle 14, a cylindrical pillar-shaped obstacle b and c near the sensor 2, a cylindrical pillar-shaped obstacle d near the sensor 3, A large obstacle e such as a wall exists near the sensor 4.

At this time, as shown in FIG. 8, the processing order of the signal processing unit 7 is such that the transmitting process and the receiving process for each of the sensors 1 to 4 are sequentially performed, and then the transmitting process and the receiving process are performed. Based on the obtained result, display on the display 6 and output of the buzzer 12 are performed.

FIG. 9 is a time chart showing the input and output times of the transmission signal and the reception signal in the sensor 1. When the transmission signal C1 from the signal processing section 7 is received, the transmission / reception device 1A of the sensor 1 outputs the time t1. The ultrasonic wave is output to the outside and the obstacle a
The received signals D1 and D2 due to the ultrasonic waves reflected from the transmitting / receiving unit 1A and the receiving unit 1B are reflected at time t.
2, t3. At this time, one of the transmitting / receiving device 1A and the dedicated receiving device 1B which is closer to the obstacle receives the ultrasonic wave reflected first.

Here, the distance from the sensor 1 to the obstacle a based on the time T1 from the output time t1 of the transmitted signal to the input time t2 of the first received signal is the transmission / reception device 1A and the reception only device 1B. The angle between the sensor 1 and the obstacle is calculated by the above-described method based on the time difference T2 between the input times t2 and t3 of the received signal from the sensor 1.

FIG. 10 shows an example of the display, in which display areas 21 to 24 indicate the positions of obstacles detected by the sensors 1 to 4 at the respective corners of the vehicle 20 displayed in the display frame 25 of the display 6. There is. The displayed upper left area display section 21 of the vehicle 20 indicates an obstacle detected by the sensor 1, and the displayed upper right, lower left, and lower right display area sections 22, 23, and 24 of the displayed vehicle 20 are sensors 2 and 23, respectively. The obstacles detected by 3 and 4 are shown.

Each of the display area sections 21 to 24 is composed of a total of 15 area sections having three resolutions for each distance and five resolutions for each angle, and the distance calculated by the signal processing section 7 as described above. Based on the angle, each area corresponding to the position of the obstacle obtained by referring to the distance conversion memory 13 is displayed by lighting or the like. At this time, as shown in FIG. 11, the distance conversion memory 13 stores the display area 21 corresponding to the angle and the distance calculated by the signal processor 7.
This is a non-volatile memory that stores a display area to be lighted and displayed in each of the sensors 1 to 24 for each of the sensors 1 to 4.

The details of the display area sections 21 to 24 will be described using the display area section 21. In the display area section 21, when the distance between the body of the vehicle 14 and the obstacle is 35 to 50 cm, the areas 101 to 105, when the distance is 20 to 35 cm, the areas 106 to 110, and when the distance is 0 to 20 cm, the areas 111 to 111.
As shown at 115, the distance between the vehicle body and the obstacle is divided into three. Further, with respect to the angle between the body of the vehicle 14 and the obstacle, the areas 101, 106, 111, the areas 102, 107,
112, areas 103, 108, 113, area 10
5, 109, 114 and areas 105, 110, 115.

In this case, in the display of the display area section 21, the distance conversion memory is referred to based on the distance and angle between the vehicle body of the vehicle 14 and the obstacle a detected as described above, and Distance to obstacle a is 35-50cm
The area 102, which is the second angle range from the lateral direction to the forward direction of the vehicle body, is converted into data for lighting and displayed. As a result, the distance from the vehicle body of the vehicle 14 to the obstacle a is displayed instead of the distance from the sensor 1 to the obstacle a, and the angle of the obstacle a with respect to the vehicle body of the vehicle 14 is displayed so as to be understood. The driver can know the position of the obstacle a in detail.

Next, an example in which obstacles b and c are detected by the sensor 2 will be described. Similarly to the sensor 1, the sensor 2 has a transmitting / receiving device 2A for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves and a receiving device 2B for receiving ultrasonic waves. FIG. 12 is a time chart showing the time relationship between the transmitted signal and the received signal by the sensor 2. The signal processing unit 7 sends the signal to the transmitting / receiving device 2 at time t11.
A transmission signal E is output to A, and an ultrasonic wave is output from the transmission / reception device 2A to the outside. Then, the reflected signals F1 and G1 from the obstacles b and c received by the transmitter / receiver 2A are transmitted at time t1.
3 and t14, the signal processing unit 7 inputs, and the signal processing unit 7 inputs the reflection signals F2 and G2 from the obstacles b and c received by the wave receiving unit 2B at times t12 and t15. At this time, the received signal input via the transmission / reception device 2A and the reception-only device 2B is faster for the obstacle b and slower for the obstacle c.

The distance from the sensor 2 to the obstacle b is earlier than the output time t11 of the transmission signal to the transmission / reception device 2A and the reception signal input via the transmission / reception device 2A and the reception only device 2B. It is calculated by the above-described method based on the difference between the two input times t12 and the time T11. The angle between the sensor 2 and the obstacle b is determined by the time difference T1 between the input / output time of the reception signal from the transmission / reception device 2A and the reception-only device 2B at the obstacle b.
2 is calculated by the method described above.

Similarly, the distance from the sensor 2 to the obstacle c is the output time t11 of the transmission signal to the transmitter / receiver 2A,
The difference between the input time t14 of the earlier received signal of the received signals passing through the transmitting / receiving device 2A and the dedicated receiving device 2B, time T13
Is calculated based on the above-mentioned method. The angle between the sensor 2 and the obstacle c is determined by the transmitting / receiving device 2A and the wave receiving device 2A.
It is calculated from the time difference T14 between the input times of the received signals from B by the above-described method. In this way, information on a plurality of obstacles b and c is calculated.

Based on the data on the distances and angles of the obstacles b and c calculated in this way, as in the case of the sensor 1, the memory contents of the distance conversion memory 13 are referred to, and the display area shown in FIG. The area 119 of the areas 116 to 120 in which the distance from the body of the vehicle 14 to the obstacle is 35 to 50 cm and the areas 121 to 125 in which the distance of the obstacle from the body of the vehicle 14 to the obstacle is 20 to 35 cm Area 122 is lit.

In this display, a plurality of obstacles b, c
In, the distance and the angle of the vehicle 14 from the vehicle body are displayed, so that the driver of the vehicle 14 can know the position of the obstacle in more detail.

Similarly, in the sensor 3, the obstacle d
Is detected, and the distance and angle to the obstacle d are calculated.
Then, similarly to the sensors 1 and 2, the area is displayed in the display area section 23 with reference to the distance conversion memory 13, and the area 143 in which the distance between the vehicle and the obstacle d is 0 to 20 cm is lit. At this time, all the areas at a distance of 0 to 20 cm, that is, areas 141 to 145 are lighted and displayed in the vicinity of a vehicle having an obstacle of 20 cm or less, in consideration of safety.

Next, an example of detecting an obstacle e by the sensor 4 will be described with reference to a time chart of FIG. As with the sensors 1 and 2, the sensor 4 also has a transmitter / receiver 4A for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves, and a dedicated receiving device 4 for receiving ultrasonic waves.
B, and the distance from the sensor 4 to the obstacle e is
The output time t21 of the transmission signal to the transmission / reception unit 4A, the reception signal that is the earlier of the transmission / reception unit 4A and the reception only unit 4B, that is, the reception signal received via the transmission / reception unit 4A Based on the difference between the input times t22 of J1 and the time T21,
It is calculated by the method described above. The angle between the sensor 4 and the obstacle e is calculated from the time difference T22 between the input times t22 and t23 of the reception signals J1 and K1 from the transmission / reception unit 4A and the reception unit 4B.

In this case, since the obstacle e is large, such as a wall, the reflected signals are reflected from various places of the obstacle e. Therefore, the received signal of each of the transmitting / receiving unit 4A and the dedicated receiving unit 4B is received. Are overlapped, and the reception signal is input to the reception-only device 4B continuously for the time T23 from the time t23 to the time t24.

Based on the calculated distance and angle between the sensor 4 and the obstacle e, the area 149 of the display area 24 in which the distance from the vehicle to the obstacle is 35 to 50 cm shown in FIG. However, if the received signal is continuous as described above, the size of the target obstacle is obtained from the continuous time T23 by the signal processing unit 7, and not only from the area 149 but also from the vehicle. Areas with different angles at the same distance from the obstacle to 35 to 50 cm, for example, a total of 3 areas 148 and 150
Outputs the display of the area. As described above, by performing the display according to the shape such as the size of the obstacle, which is one of the information about the obstacle, the driver of the vehicle 14 can know the information about the obstacle in detail.

In each of the above-mentioned area displays, 0 to 20 cm is displayed in red, 20 to 35 cm in yellow, and 35 to 50 cm in green. The signal processing unit 7 of the control unit 5 controls the obstacles a, b, c, d, and e calculated for each of the sensors 1 to 4.
With reference to the distance conversion memory 13 from the distance and angle to
Converted to the distance between the body of the vehicle 14 and each of the obstacles a to e,
The buzzer 12 sounds at different tones depending on the distance, such as changing the cycle of the obstacle closest to the vehicle body in accordance with the distance from the vehicle body to the obstacle.

As described above, in this embodiment,
Since the distance of the obstacle from the vehicle body of the vehicle 14 is displayed instead of the distance of the obstacle from the sensors 1 to 4 provided on the vehicle 14, the angle from the front direction y of the vehicle as shown in the conventional example of FIG. When the obstacle 63 exists at a large position of
The distance L2 from the vehicle body, not the distance L1 from the sensor, is known, so that the position of the obstacle can be known accurately.

Further, as described above, the driver of the vehicle can know the shape and number of obstacles, and the operability at the time of turning the vehicle, stopping the vehicle, passing on narrow roads, entering the garage, and parallel parking is improved. I do.

[0048]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a transmitting unit for transmitting an ultrasonic wave, and at least two receiving units for receiving a reflected wave of the transmitted ultrasonic wave. A sensor that detects an obstacle, a computing unit that computes distance information about the obstacle based on transmission and reception of ultrasonic waves by the sensor, and a distance information about the obstacle computed by the computing unit from the body of the vehicle. Since a conversion unit for converting the distance to the obstacle and a display unit for displaying and outputting the distance from the vehicle body to the obstacle converted by the conversion unit are provided, the driver of the vehicle can determine the position of the obstacle with respect to the vehicle body. Can be known in more detail.

Further, according to the invention of claim 2, according to the invention of claim 1, there is provided a notifying means for generating an alarm sound, and the alarm sound is generated according to the distance from the vehicle body to the obstacle converted by the conversion section. Since the tone is changed, the driver of the vehicle can know the position of the obstacle with respect to the vehicle body in more detail.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first and second aspects of the present invention, the arithmetic unit determines the shape of the obstacle based on transmission and reception of ultrasonic waves by the sensor, and the display unit determines the shape of the determined obstacle. Since the display according to the shape of the obstacle is performed, the driver of the vehicle can know the shape of the obstacle and can know more detailed information of the obstacle.

Further, the invention of claim 4 is based on claims 1, 2,
In the invention of 3, the display unit has a plurality of display areas each corresponding to a distance from the vehicle body to the obstacle and displaying the distance by displaying, and a plurality of obstacles are displayed by the sensor. When detected, the display areas corresponding to the distances of the plurality of obstacles from the vehicle body are displayed, so that the driver of the vehicle can know the existence of the plurality of obstacles.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a vehicle obstacle detection device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a top view showing a state where the vehicle obstacle detection device of the present invention is mounted on a vehicle.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a structure of a sensor 1 of the vehicle obstacle detection device of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a positional relationship between a sensor and an obstacle.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a relationship between a sensor of the vehicle obstacle detection device of the present invention and a reflected wave from the obstacle, and FIG.
FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram when an obstacle is present to the right of the sensor normal, and FIG. 6B is a schematic diagram when an obstacle is present to the left of the sensor normal.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a signal processing state of a signal processing unit of the vehicle obstacle detection device of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a top view showing a positional relationship between a vehicle equipped with the vehicle obstacle detection device of the present invention and an obstacle.

FIG. 8 is a timing chart showing a signal processing order of a signal processing unit of the vehicle obstacle detection device of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a time chart showing input and output states of a transmission signal and a reception signal in the sensor 1 of the vehicle obstacle detection device of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a state diagram showing a display state of the display device of the vehicle obstacle detection device of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a configuration diagram showing a configuration of a distance conversion memory of the vehicle obstacle detection device of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a time chart showing input and output states of a transmission signal and a reception signal in the sensor 2 of the vehicle obstacle detection device of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a time chart showing input and output states of a transmitted signal and a received signal in the sensor 4 of the vehicle obstacle detection device of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a top view showing a state where a conventional vehicle obstacle detection device is mounted on a vehicle.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a conventional vehicle obstacle detection device.

FIG. 16 is a time chart showing input and output states of a transmission signal and a reception signal of a conventional vehicle obstacle detection device.

FIG. 17 is a state diagram showing a display state of an obstacle in the conventional vehicle obstacle detection device.

FIG. 18 is a top view showing a problem of the conventional vehicle obstacle detection device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1, 2, 3, 4 sensor 5 control unit 6 display 7 signal processing unit 8 transmission processing unit 9 reception processing unit 10 switching circuit 11 display I / F 12 buzzer 13 distance conversion memory

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A sensor for detecting an obstacle around a vehicle, comprising: a transmitting unit for transmitting an ultrasonic wave; and at least two receiving units for receiving a reflected wave of the transmitted ultrasonic wave; A calculation unit that calculates distance information about the obstacle based on transmission and reception of sound waves, and a conversion unit that converts the distance information about the obstacle calculated by the calculation unit into a distance from the vehicle body to the obstacle, A display unit that displays a distance from the vehicle body to the obstacle converted by the conversion unit. 2. The alarm device according to claim 1, further comprising: a notifying unit that generates an alarm sound, wherein the tone of the alarm sound is changed according to a distance from the vehicle body to the obstacle converted by the conversion unit. Obstacle detection device for vehicles. 3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the calculating unit determines the shape of the obstacle based on transmission and reception of the ultrasonic wave by the sensor, and the display unit performs display according to the determined shape of the obstacle. The vehicle obstacle detection device according to any one of claims 1 and 2. 4. The display unit has a plurality of display areas each corresponding to a distance from a vehicle body to an obstacle and displaying the distance by displaying the plurality of display areas. 4. The vehicle obstacle detecting device according to claim 1, wherein when detected, the display areas corresponding to the distances of the plurality of obstacles from the vehicle body are displayed. .